Tree-smoking apparatus



No. 620,842. Patented Mar 7, I899.

L. n. ELLIOTT.

TREE SMOKING APPARATUS.

(Application filed Oct. 11, 1898.)

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT EETOE.

LORENZO D. ELLIOTT, OF PIERPORT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR OF TWO-THIRDS TO GEORGE E. COLEMAN AND GEORGEE. SIMMONS, OF SOUTH FRANK- FOR'I, MICHIGAN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 620,842, dated March 7, 1899.

I Application filed October 11, 1898. Serial No. 693,206. (No model.)

T at whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LORENZO D. ELLIOTT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pierport, in the county of Manistee and State of Michigan, have invented new and useful Improvements in Tree-Smoking Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to apparatus for smoking fruit and other trees, so as to destroy the IO insects thereon, and its novelty and advantages will appear from the following description and claims when taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating [5 my improved apparatus in its proper operative position. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the smudger of the apparatus. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective View of a portion of the canvas wall and one of its peculiar props or supports.

Referring by letter to said drawings, A'is' the flexible wall, of canvas or other suitable material, of my improved apparatus, which is designed to be set up around a tree, so as to prevent the smudge or smoke from escaping and compel the same to pass up through the foliage of the tree, and B are the supports or props of the wall, which are connected thereto at intervals in the length thereof, as illus- 3o trated. These props or' supports B are provided at their upper ends with forks a, designed to engage the limbs of a tree, as shown in Fig.1, so as to hold the props in position, and

at their lower ends said props or supports are 3 5 provided with the foot-pieces 5. (Better illustrated in Fig. 3.) The said foot-pieces are pivotally connected to the main or body portion 0 of the props, as indicated by d, and while they will normally rest in alinement 40 with said main or body portions to hold the forks a in engagement with the tree-limbs, yet they may be readily flexed, when desired,

to permit of a ready disengagement of the forks a from the tree-limbs and a consequent 5 quick removal of the wall and its props from the tree, which is a highly important advantage when a large number of trees are to be smoked in a short space of time, as is obvious.

O is the smudger of the apparatus. This smudger comprises a suitable casing e, hav- 5o ing a fan-chamberfat its bottom and one or more metal drawers g, which are arranged in the casing one above the other, with a sufficient space between them for the passage of smoke or smudge, and are provided in their outer walls with openings h for the admission of air to support combustion of the smudge. The fan-chamber f of the smudger contains a fan i,which may be rotated from the handwheel j through the medium of belt in and pul- 6o ley Z, and said fan-chamber is connected with the pipe-opening m in the top of the casing e by a pipe n, whereby it will be observed that when the fan is rotated from the hand-wheel a strong suction will be created at the top of the casing, which will materially promote the combustion of the smudge and will draw the smoke through the pipe-opening and will prevent it from escaping from the sides and front of the casing and annoying the operator.

D is the rigid stack of the smudger, which rises from the opening on inthe top of the easing, and E is the flexible andextensible conveyer,which forms a continuation of the stack D. This flexible and extensible conveyerthat is, one capable of being flexed and stretchedis connected at one end to the stackD and is preferably formed by the coiled wire 19 and a covering q, of canvas or other suitable material, so as to permit of its being moved in various directions from the stack D and increased in length to guide the smoke to different parts of the tree within the wall A. Said conveyer is preferably provided at its upper end with a metallic collar 4, and to 8 5 this collar is pivotally connected a bail s, at the upper end of a handle F, for manipulating the conveyer E, which handle is made long, so as to enable the operator to stand outside the wall A and manipulate the conveyer 0 within the same. WVhen desired, the handle may comprise two or more detachably-connected sections.

In practice the wall A is supported about a tree in the manner shown in Fig. 1 and the smudger O is arranged at about the distance illustrated from said wall and the flexible conveyer is passed between the contiguous ends of the wall within the same, as shown. The smudge is now placed in the drawers 9 and fired, and the fan 2' is rotated through the medium of the gearing described to promote combustion and draw the dense smoke into the stack and force it through the same. While the fan is being rotated by one person it is simply necessary for the other operator to shift the conveyer E about within the wall A until every part of the tree is smoked. This may be quickly effected, as the wall A prevents the smoke from being blown away by the wind and practically compels all of it to pass up through the foliage of the tree.

Vhen the smoking of one tree is completed,

the wall A may be quickly taken down in the manner described and moved to and set up around another tree to which the smudger may be removed, when the operation described may be repeated.

The facility with which the wall A may be taken down and put up and the fact that the smudger may be conveniently moved from place to place are important advantages, as they admit of a number of trees being thoroughly smoked in a short time.

In order that the smudgerO may be easily moved from tree to tree, I provide it with a bail G, carrying a traveling wheel D and hand-levers E, as best shown in Fig. 2. The bail G is pivotally connected to the smudger at opposite sides thereof and has its wheelD disposed in front of the smudger. The handlevers E are fulcrumed above the bail at opposite sides of the smudger and are connected by links F with the arms of the bail, as illustrated. By virtue of this it will be seen that by grasping the rear end of the hand-levers and raising them the operator is enabled to easily raise the smudger from the ground and move the same about after the manner of a wheelbarrow.

The smudge or smoke forming material may be composed of any ingredients suitable to the purpose.

Having described my invention, what I claim is 1. The herein-described apparatus for smoking trees, comprising a wall capable of surrounding a tree and having a space between its contiguous ends, a smudger arranged outside the wall, and the flexible and extensible conveyer connected with the smudger and passed between the contiguous ends of the Wall and having the long handle connected to it at or adjacent to its free end so as to en able a person standing on the ground without the wall to manipulate the end of the conveyer within the wall and at a distance above the ground, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. A tree-smoking apparatus comprising the wall of canvas or other flexible material having the separate supports or props B permanently connected to it at intervals in its length; the said supports or props comprising the main or body portions 0 having forks at their upper ends adapted to engage the limbs of a tree, and the foot-pieces b so connected to the main or body portions that they may be flexed, a smudger arranged outside the wall, and a conveyor leading from the smudger within the wall of canvas, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a tree-smoking apparatus, the Wall of canvas or other flexible material having the separate supports or props B permanently connected to it at intervals in its length; the said supports or props comprising the main or body portions 0 having forks at their upper ends adapted to engage the limbs of a tree, and the foot-pieces b so connected to the main or body portions that they may be flexed, substantially as specified.

' 4. In a tree-smoking apparatus, asmudger, a bail pivotally connected to the smudger at opposite sides thereof and carrying a wheel disposed in front of the smudger, hand-levers pivotally connected to the smudger above the bail, and straps or links connecting the levers and the arms of the bail, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LORENZO D. ELLIOTT.

Witnesses:

CHARLES W. PERRY, EDWARD LITTLE. 

